TRN and Newstalk ZB command radio market

Media Release 4 November 2005

TRN and Newstalk ZB command radio market

The Radio Network says it is delighted that in the face of a more competitive situation Newstalk ZB has increased its audience and has a commanding share of the Auckland market.

"Newstalk ZB has an incomparable line-up of hosts, as do its fellow TRN stations, and this shows out in the results," said TRN chief executive John McElhinney today, commenting on the latest radio ratings survey results.

"Newstalk ZB has shown a clean pair of heels to rival talk stations, and it is equally cheering to see Classic Hits in the number two slot overall and top music station."

Mr McElhinney said he was very pleased that the two stations had retained a healthy lead nationwide as well as in Auckland, a result reflected in the nationwide comparison between the total TRN group and rival CanWest group.

"The latest results are no surprise to us and we are delighted that the full portfolio of TRN brands is reaching so much of the market," he said. "We recognised that the market is differentiating more than it used to, hence the introduction of such widely varying stations as Viva and Flava - and another of our newcomers, Coast, has moved up a notch in audience share, and is cementing its position."

Mr McElhinney said some of the notable features of the latest survey included:

· TRN's total portfolio audience share moving up 2.4 percentage points to 52.7% in the Auckland market while the Canwest group slipped to 21.3%

· Newstalk ZB increasing its overall Auckland market share to 15.9% from 12.1%

· Paul Holmes stretching his lead in the highly competitive breakfast bracket in the Auckland market, scoring 21.6% share compared with Radio Pacific's 3.9% and Radio Live's 2.7%*

· Leighton Smith's morning show also distancing Radio Live and Radio Pacific in the nine-till-noon slot

· Larry Williams also moving up dramatically in homebound drive-time share against the same two stations, despite Radio Live carrying TV3 news

· Newstalk ZB increasing share in nine of the 13 survey markets to retain overall national number one share

· Classic Hits showing its supremacy both nationwide and in Auckland as the music station with the top share

· New station Viva gaining instant appeal with its differentiated blend of music and talk

· Coast moving further ahead of competitor Solid Gold in the Auckland market and gaining share in new markets around the country

"There are a lot of pluses for TRN in this survey, not least among them the fact that there has been a strong showing across the board at a time when there has been more competition than ever," said Mr McElhinney.

"In particular, it is great to see Newstalk ZB reinforcing its top spot. The station has long been a leader in many ways and we intend to further enhance its offering in the coming months."

ENDS

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